1896-97-] Bees: A Year's Work in the Hive. 209 



almost a sealed book to us, but we now know a great many- 

 things that were formerly only guessed at, and very far from 

 correct these guesses often were. Now we can take out the 

 combs, with bees upon them, like books from a bookcase, and 

 examine the bees and their work as often as we please. 



I may here state that bee-keeping is quite a hobby of mine ; 

 and as hardly any one likes to be odd, it would be a great 

 pleasure for me to know of any of the members of this Society 

 taking to bee-keeping. Bees can be kept almost anywhere ; 

 but when in a suitable district of country, a more pleasant, 

 interesting, instructive, and profitable occupation can scarcely 

 be found. The interest attached to bee-keeping becomes very 

 much stronger as one gets acquainted with the natural in- 

 stincts and economy of the bees — in fact, so very strong does 

 it sometimes become, that it may truly be said the bee-keeper 

 " has a bee in his bonnet." 



Having selected the natural habits of the bee for my paper 

 to-night, I shall explain the work done by a swarm of bees 

 during one year. Of course I shall confine my remarks mostly 

 to the hive- or honey-bee, usually kept by us for supplying 

 honey and wax. As far as I know, it is the only bee that we 

 can get a supply of honey from, and the only one that produces 

 pure wax. It may be interesting to our members to be told 

 something about the other two insects of this country which 

 build combs and have a life-history similar to our friend the 

 honey-bee — viz., the humble-bee, or, as it is often called, the 

 " bumbee," of which there are several species ; and that 

 rather pretty but impudent little thief in his uniform of 

 black-and-gold, the common wasp. All three build combs, and 

 the communities of each are composed of queen, workers, and 

 drones. The combs of the honey-bee are made of pure wax, and 

 are large perpendicular slabs of six-sided cells, lying horizontal, 

 or nearly so. There are generally two kinds of cells — (1) 

 worker cells by themselves, five side by side being an inch, and 

 with nearly twenty-nine cells to the square inch; and (2) drone 

 cells by themselves, four of which measure an inch or a little 

 over, and eighteen, or very nearly eighteen and a half, to the 

 square inch. The queen - cells are very different from the 

 others : they are a mixture of wax and pollen, and are wider 

 at the bottom than the top — I mean, the inner end of the cell, 



